WORTH NOTING ON TV

ByAlan BunceJune 3, 1994

CNN's D-Day Coverage (CNN, 3:30 a.m., EDT): As network, cable, and local-station coverage of the D-Day anniversary mounts, here's one way to solve the question of what to watch: Keep an eye on CNN, whose coverage begins in the wee hours (EDT) of Friday. That early live report takes place at Italy's Nettuno Cemetery, where war dead are honored and the liberation of Rome commemorated. Other live reports will follow.

Saturday's coverage starts at 5 a.m., EDT, with a ceremony honoring the war dead from Cambridge Cemetery, England. At 5 a.m. Sunday, reports begin with the Drumhead Service from Portsmouth, England.

On Monday, the actual D-Day anniversary, the starting time is even earlier: 12:30 a.m., EDT, with reports from Omaha Beach and Pointe du Hoc. Other events include a memorial service aboard the USS George Washington, a Ranger Assault Ceremony from Pointe du Hoc, and a US-French Ceremony at Utah Beach, which President Clinton and French President Francois Mitterrand are expected to attend.

The International Ceremony at Omaha Beach, with all D-Day Allied leaders on hand, begins at 8:30 a.m. President Clinton speaks at the US Memorial Ceremony from Colleville Cemetery in Normandy at 11 a.m.

And for the truly persistent viewer, a 90-minute version of ``Larry King Live'' airs at 1 p.m., with veterans from both sides as guests, as well as Maxine of the Andrews Sisters.

In John F. Kennedy's day, the press could still be won over by the right approach. How much that has changed is well-known by anyone who remembers the wolf-pack tone at Nixon's late press conferences. (One especially loud reporter stands out in some minds.) This documentary, hosted by Bill Kurtis, explores the role of the ``spin doctor'' and other aspects of the topic.